Last Waltz by Tim Constable

Over the past week, I have been spending a lot of time looking for one more piece to fill out my percussion ensemble program. I found a lot of great pieces that I will be posting in the coming months. Today’s video features a performance by Ensemble 64.8 performing Last Waltz (2009) by Tim Constable.

This is the first of four movements contained in the work ‘Percussion Quartet No. 1′
by the young Australian percussionist and composer Timothy Constable, provides a new take on the traditional waltz. Taking from the dances’ lilting rhythms and reworking them to an unusual degree of complexity and syncopation, Constable creates a challenging and energetic percussion quartet that leads perfectly onto the other three movements of the work; ‘Tango,’ ‘Loop,’ and ‘Final Science.’ ‘Last Waltz’ contains sections of percussive counterpoint in which motives are passed between the performers, as well as powerful and energetic themes played in unison, creating dramatic moments of driving rhythm.

The work shown here was performed by Ensemble 64.8, the resident percussion ensemble at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. (Performers from left to right: Morris Palter, Fiona Digney, Trevor Saint, and Eric Retterer.) Nov. 20 2010 at the Davis Concert Hall located on the UAF Campus.

Dr. Dave Gerhart, Product Manager, Percussion for Yamaha Corporation of America and Lecturer of Percussion at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at CSU, Long Beach, is a nationally recognized performer, composer, and educator. Dr. Gerhart, originally from Fairfield, California, holds a D.M.A. from the University of Southern California, M.M. in Percussion Performance and Instrumental Conducting and a B.M. in Music Education from California State University, Long Beach.